FATAL RAILWAY SMASH.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLVIII, Issue 8932, 26 June 1905, Page 2

FATAL RAILWAY SMASH.

WASHOUT BY FLOOD WATERS. TWO MEN KILLED. NOTHER HAS BOTH LEGS BROKEN. GREAT SHOCK TO IWbSENGERS. be [PRESS ASSOCIATION.] tl] UHKISTOHUKCH, Juno 24. " A serious railway fatality occurred to lie mid-day truin for Kaiapoi, whereby [, J Alexander, schoolmaster at Kaiapoi . nd John Richards, farmer at the name l \ lace lost their lives, tuid George Clothier, k araier of Kaiapoi, had both legs broken, j \ Tho accident occurred about three-quar- > era of a mile from Chaney's, the ste- 1 ion before Kainpoi. The country was loodeJ in the locality. The train had previously gone over a ilace where there was little water on the l •ails, and the driver was advancing very « ■arefnlly. Tho track ahead appeared safe, , nit suddenly the cngino plunged into the , vater, antl sank halfway up to tho boiler, : £ he flood waters having loosened the soft j t randy soil. " „ Tho brako and feeder vans next the cnjine. were turned on their ends and tho 1 a Irst passenger carriage ran into them. . Alexander and Richards were standing an tho rear platform of the carnage, and Ulothier was on the front of the next carriage. The first two mentioned wore iam- j mod between the two carriages and killed, and Clothier was caught in tlie wreck and ' ( had both Jogs smashed. j No on© elso was injured, though the ( passengers received a severe shock when the vans collided, which was sufficient to , throw people off their 6cats, and caused | groat consternation. Two doctors were sent from Kaiapoi, and a similar number from here. The Minister for Hallways first heard of the accident, at Rakaia, and was greatly concerned when, he learned of tho casualty. FURTHER PARTICULARS. PASSENGERS GHASTLY DEATHS. CHIUSTCHUHCH, June 25. ' The scene of the accident is a short distance beyond Cnaney's, a flag station ten miJes from Christchurch, one mile from Belfast, and four from Kaiapoi. I Overflow waters from the Wainiakarin i yesterday spread over practically level | country 'between the river and Belfast,, j the railway line acting as a kind of dam. . The soil is light and sandy, and th© flood I water gradually worked its way through • the railway embankment, undermining its foundation, and consequently withdrawing the necessary support from the permanent way. The voi«r!ri of (!<» cMi;:ino proved too much for the weakened track, iwid the engine suddenly dipped into a depression caused by its own weight, and forced its way almost to the other side of it, but the Tails gave* way and -the engine was thrown on its side on the left of the Dermanent way. The driver and firemon jumped from the cngiue into the water and landed without injury. Th© gviard escaped with a slight J cut on his face. On the rear platform of the first carriage wore standing Messrs Alexander and Richards, though some accounts state that they had just rushed out of the carriage on to the platform when the accident occurred. The sudden stoppage forced the first carriage into the second one, and Messrs Alexander's and Richard's heads w^re caught between, the ends of Iho roof of the second and firet carriages, and were almost severed from the trunks. Death was instantaneous. Clothier was standing on tho front platform of the second carriage, and when the impact occurred has legs were caught in the ' Wreckage of the carriages, and both limbs were broken. * The bodies of tho victims wero taken on by train to Kaiapoi, and Clothier was removed to the hospital by tho train which fdso conveyed the remainder of the pas-

stmgers to Uhristcnurcn. The falling of the engine into the depression caused a broach m /the. railway embankment through which ilood waters pourod with the force of a mill race, and i-he engine was quickly submerged. Medical men informed the railway authorities that they had searched for ot-hor injured passengers, but could find none. , This morning large gangs were conveyed from tho ciiy, and wore soon hard at work repairing the damage. AfU % r the accident occurred three washouts took plare between Belfast- and the Bceiftj of tlic accident. To-day the floods subsided considerably aud the engine was half out of water. Repairing of tho washouts between Belfast and Chanoy's will probably be finished today. A temporary deviation of the line is to be put in at the sceni* of the accident. R. J. Alexander, who was a native of Saemnnham, Suffolk, England, was 61 years of age and married. He had been headmaster of tho KiiianoL school since 1880. o